Blank-feeding mechanism.



H. L.'-SMITH. BLANK FEEDING MECHANISM.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 3. 191].

Patented Apr. 9,1918.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1'- mamwo I r? v'E/ fur M Affarne H. L. SMITH. BLANK FEEDING MECHANISM. APPLICATION FILED OCT. 3. 1917 Patented Apr. 9, 1918.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

A f fu r/Eg UNTTED %TATFL% PATENT OFFICE.

HENRY L. SMITH, OF W'A'IERBURY, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO THE E. J. 1VIANVILLE MACHINE COMPANY, OF W'ATEB-BURY, CONNECTICUT, A CORPORATION OF CON- NECTICUT.

BLANK-FEEDING MECHANISM.

Application filed October 3, 1917.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known'that I, HENRY L. SMITH, a citizen of the United States, residing at WVaterbury, in the county of New Haven and State of Connecticut, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Blank- Feeding Mechanism, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to those mechanisms for feeding metal blanks of the type illustrated in U. S. patent to Charles T. Brennan No. 1,180,903, April 25, 1916, which mechanisms pick headed blanks from masses in hoppers and feed them to the operating tools of such machines as bolt and screw headers, trimmers, pointers, threaders, slotters and rollers. Mechanisms of this class have in the hoppers oscillatory elevators which move down into the promiscuous mass of blanks and carry up blanks to the ends of inclined tracks down which those blanks that are properly presented slide hanging by their heads. Frequently the blanks are lifted crosswise or in other positions so that they obstruct the tracks and thus interrupt the feed of the blanks to the operating tools. To obviate this monitors, such for instance as the reciprocatory comb of the machine of the patent refen'ed to, have been arranged at the upper ends of the tracks to knock off the misplaced blanks and permit the free flow down the tracks of those blanks which are correctly presented. In practice it has been found, particularly when feeding long blanks, that the tracks would load up at the ends in the hoppers, that is,

' blanks would accumulate therein and when the elevators rose these blanks would be pushed up and the monitors would become broken and rendered inoperative.

The object of this invention is to provide a very simple means for a feeding mechanism of the class mentioned, which will as the elevator descends cause the blanks that have accumulated improperly between theplates at the end of the track to be precipitated back into the hopper and thus leave the end of the track free for receiving such blanks as are brought up by the elevator in proper position to pass the monitor and slide down the track, and eliminate the possibility of so lifting the blanks as to injure the monitor.

The track is formed of two plates spaced apart so that the shanks of the blanks will Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 9, 1918.

Serial No. 194,465.

hang substantially vertical when their heads rest upon and slide down the upper inclined edges of the plates. It is the space between the upper ends of these track plates that tends to load up with an accumulation of blanks and put the monitor, which is on top at the ends of the track plates, out of commission, and to attain the object of this invention a diverting plate is arranged in the space between the ends of the track plates in such manner as to cause the blanks that accumulate therein to be thrown back into the hopper when the elevator descends.

Figure 1. of the accompanying drawings shows a side viewof a blank feeding mechanism which embodies this invention. Fig. 2 shows a plan of the same. Fig. 3 shows a vertical section through the hopper on the plane indicated by the dotted line 33 on Fig. 2. Fig. 4: is a side view on larger scale of the end of the track and of the monitor, illustrating the manner in which the 1nis placed blanks accumulate wrongly in the track and are thrown back into the hopper when the elevator descends. Fig. 5 a. edge view of the parts shown in Fig. at.

The hopper 1 is a castiron receptacle of common shape. Movable up and down in this hopper is the elevator 2 which is formed of two segmental plates spaced apart a distance substantially equal to the diameter of the shanks of the blanks to be elevated. This elevator is secured to an arm 3 fastened on an arbor at mounted in a bracket 5 attached to the outside of the hopper. On the other end of the arbor is a rocker arm 6. A link 7 connects the rocker arm with a crank 8 on the shaft 9 bearing the gear wheel 10. This gear is engaged by a pinion 11 on the shaft 12 bearing the driving pulley 13. By means of this mechanism the elevator is oscillated up and down in the hopper at the desired intervals.

Extending through an opening in the front wall of the hopper in the usual manner is the track formed by the two plates 14 which are arranged some distance apart with their upper edges on an incline. The blanks that are raised properly, that is, by their heads with their shanks hanging down between the elevator plates, when the elevator is in its uppermost position slide down the elevator and down the track as do the blanks 15 in Fig. 4.

In case any of the blanks are brought up by the elevator crosswise or are misplaced in any other way, to prevent them from accumulating in the hopper on top of the track and forming an obstruction, a comb 16 is arranged to be reciprocated on the inclined edge of the track at its upper end.-

This comb has an opening which permits the passage of the heads of the bolts that are in proper position to slide down the track, but not allow the passage of misplaced blanks. The comb is fastened to an arm 17 which outside of the hopper is connected with a slotted link 18 that is pivotally hung on a bracket 19. Extending into the slot in the link is a crank pin 20 projecting from a crank disk 21 on the end of a shaft 22, mounted in the bracket. This shaft is provided with. a pulley 23 and this pulley is connected by a belt 24: with a pulley 25 on the driving shaft 12. By means of this mechanism the comb is given a desired reciprocation, and acts a monitor which permits the feed of properly raised blanks and knocks otl into the hopper such blanks a are not properly presented for feeding.

The blanks sometimes accumulat wrongly in the space between the ends of the track plates, as illustrated by the blanks 27 in Fig. 4. Should the blanks remain in this space in this position and the elevator ome up with a load of blanks, the blank improperly accumulated between the track plates would be forced up in such manner s to break the comb and render it inoperative. To obviate this a plate 28 with an inclined upper edge is fastened to the inside one or the track plates. This plate has its outer edge shaped to fit between the edges of the elevator plates. With this simple arrangement when the elevator goes down such blanks as have improperly accumulated between the track plates are precipitated out from between the track plates and fall by grmity'back into the hopper, as are the blanks 29 in Fig. 4, so that when the elevator rises there is no accumulation of improperly placed blanks that can be forced up to break the comb.

The invention claimed is:

1. In an automatic blank feed the combination with a hopper and an inclined track leading therefrom, of an elevator adapted to be lowered and raised in the hopper, mechanism for raising and lowering the elevator, a monitor movable on the inclined edge of the track near the upper end, mechanism for actuating the monitor, and a diverting plate arranged between the ends of the track plates for causing m'splaced blanks to be precipitated from between the track plates into the hopper when the elevator descends.

2. In an automatic blank feed the combination with a hopper and an inclined track Eagles of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner 05 Patents,

Washington, D. G. V 

